Business and Finance

Officials confident of economic health after stock market plunge

Focus Taiwan
Date: 2015/08/24
By: Wei Shu, Tsai Yi-chu, Kuo Chung-han and S.C. Chang

Taipei, Aug. 24 (CNA) Financial regulators and central bank officials said Monday’s stock 201508240028t0001market plunge will not affect Taiwan’s solid finances that are backed by considerable foreign exchange reserves and current account surpluses.

Tseng Ming-chung (曾銘宗), chairman of the Financial Supervisory Commission, said the history-making mid-session plunge of the Taiwan stock exchange index was caused by worries about the Chinese and Hong Kong markets.

If share prices in the United States do not fall too heavily overnight, Tseng said the benchmark Taiex index will be “rather stable” the next day.

The Taiex plunged nearly 5 percent on heavy turnover after shedding nearly 7.5 percent in just under 90 minutes of trading, the biggest plunge in a session in the Taiwan exchange’s history.     [FULL  STORY]

Taiwan must open up service sector with TiSA’s arrival

Want China Times
Editorial
Date: 2015-08-24

In the Commercial Times’ annual ranking of the top 1,000 Taiwanese businesses

Fruit on display at a Taiwan Trade Fair in Kunming, Yunnan province, Aug. 21, 2014. (File photo/Tai Jui-fen)

Fruit on display at a Taiwan Trade Fair in Kunming, Yunnan province, Aug. 21, 2014. (File photo/Tai Jui-fen)

operating in China, the number of those in the service sector hit a new high of 91, showing that these service providers are seeking to tap into new business opportunities on the mainland, despite slower growth in the Chinese economy.

On the other hand, the Taiwanese government has turned its focus to the Trade in Services Agreement (TiSA) currently being negotiated by 25 countries and regions that account for 70% of the global trade in services, after the trade-in-services deal Taiwan signed with China in 2013 was stalled by the Legislature amid public opposition.

Despite the stalled deal that would open China’s financial sector to Taiwan, Taiwanese banks continue their expansion in the mainland, operating two subsidiaries, 22 branches and eight sub-branches, with more being planned.

Taiwanese businesses are trying to move past the freeze in trade agreements with China and the Taiwanese government is seeking to further liberalize and internationalize the service sector through participation in the TiSA.     [FULL  STORY]

Manufacturing falls for third month

NO SALE:Commercial sales in the nation fell by 4.4 percent year-on-year last month, the single largest drop in the past 29 months, due to revenue woes in the retail sector

Taipei Times
Date: Aug 25, 2015
By: Lauly Li  /  Staff reporter

Taiwan’s industrial production index dropped for a third consecutive month, last month and is expected to face another annual decline this month as there is no growth catalyst, the Ministry of Economic Affairs said yesterday.

The industrial production index fell by 2.99 percent annually to 109.16 last month, mainly due to slowing growth in the semiconductor industry and falling output in the machinery industry because of soft global economic growth, the ministry said.

“As negative factors persist, the ministry expects this month’s industrial production output to drop by 2 percent to 3 percent from a year ago,” Department of Statistics Deputy Director-General Yang Kuei-hsien (楊貴顯) told a news conference.     [FULL  STORY]

Taiwan bans short selling below previous session prices

Focus Taiwan
Date: 2015/08/23
By: Tsai Yi-chu and Christie Chen

Taipei, Aug. 23 (CNA) The Financial Supervisory Commission (FSC) announced Sunday 201508230008t0001that it will ban from Monday the short selling of stocks below the closing prices of the previous business day, to stabilize Taiwan’s equity market.

From Monday, investors would not be permitted to short sell borrowed stocks and Taiwan Depositary Receipts below the closing prices of the previous session, the FSC said.

The FSC also encouraged the banking sector to buy back their own company stocks and purchase blue-chip stocks. It also urged listed companies to hold business briefings.

Taiwan may report 3rd consecutive fall in industrial output

Want China Times
Date: 2015-08-23
By: CNA

Taiwan’s Ministry of Economic Affairs said Saturday that the country’s industrial

A factory making facial masks in Changhua, June 2. (File photo/Hung Pi-chen)

A factory making facial masks in Changhua, June 2. (File photo/Hung Pi-chen)

production is likely to show a year-on-year drop in July for the third consecutive month amid a global economic slowdown.

While the July industrial production figure is expected to improve from June, it is likely to be lower than in July 2014 because of a relatively high comparison base, the ministry said, ahead of its release of the industrial production data on Aug. 24.

In June, Taiwan’s industrial production index fell 1.35% from a year earlier to 106.42 in reflection of weakening demand for high-tech gadgets such as smartphones and PCs amid a global economic slowdown. The June figure was 0.02 percentage points higher than May.

The sub-index for the local manufacturing sector, which accounts for more than 90% of the country’s total industrial production, fell 1.18% from the previous year and 0.41% from a month earlier.     [FULL  STORY]

Tsai urges verbal restraint to avoid societal strains

Taipei Times
Date: , Aug 24, 2015
By: Loa Iok-sin  /  Staff reporter

Democratic Progressive Party (DPP) Chairperson Tsai Ing-wen (蔡英文) yesterday said the Presidential Office and Chinese Nationalist Party (KMT) presidential candidate Hung Hsiu-chu (洪秀柱) should refrain from politicking that would create further divisions in society.

“Taiwan is a nation with multiple ethnic groups, so everyone should learn to listen and understand when encountering someone who has a different view point on an issue, this is especially for politicians,” Tsai said.

“Politicians should learn their lessons from history to make the nation and the people more harmonious. It is not a good thing to manipulate differences between different groups of people for political gains,” she said.     [FULL  STORY]

Taiwan may report 3rd consecutive fall in industrial production

Focus Taiwan
Date: 2015/08/22
By: Huang Chiao-wen and Frances Huang

Taipei, Aug. 22 (CNA) The Ministry of Economic Affairs (MOEA) said Saturday that 201508220017t0001Taiwan’s industrial production is likely to show a year-on-year drop in July for the third consecutive month amid a global economic slowdown.

While the July industrial production figure is expected to improve from June, it is likely to be lower than in July 2014 because of a relatively high comparison base, the ministry said, ahead of its release of the industrial production data on Aug. 24.

In June, Taiwan’s industrial production index fell 1.35 percent from a year earlier to 106.42 in reflection of weakening demand for high-tech gadgets such as smartphones and PCs amid a global economic slowdown. The June figure was 0.02 percent higher than May.     [FULL  STORY]

HTC shares fall to new low

Want China Times
Date: 2015-08-22
By: CNA

Shares of Taiwan-based smartphone vendor HTC came under pressure to fall to a new

The HTC team poses for photos after the HTC Vive received an award. (Photo/HTC)

The HTC team poses for photos after the HTC Vive received an award. (Photo/HTC)

low Friday as there have been no signs that the company will make a turnaround any time soon after its large losses in the second quarter and a gloomy outlook for the third quarter, dealers said.

Amid concerns over the vendor’s bottom line, investors tended to ignore an award for “Best Hardware” won by the HTC Vive, the virtual reality (VR) headset, this week at Gamescom, a trade fair for video games held annually in Germany, they said.

While HTC is gearing up to grasp a share in the VR headset business by launching the HTC Vive, it remains to be seen whether its efforts in VR device development will strengthen the smartphone vendor’s profitability, they added. The HTC Vive was developed with US video game supplier Valve.     [FULL  STORY]

ASE makes plans to acquire rival SPIL

CORPORATE COOPERATION:ASE’s moves for SPIL shares ownership is not about business competition, but about fending off Chinese rivals,a spokesperson said

Taipei Times
Date:  Aug 22, 2015
By: Lisa Wang  /  Staff reporter

Advanced Semiconductor Engineering Inc (ASE, 日月光半導體), the world’s biggest chip packager and tester, yesterday said it plans to acquire a 25 percent share of its main local rival, Siliconware Precision Industries Co Ltd (SPIL, 矽品精密), for up to NT$35 billion (US$1.06 billion) in an effort to fend off growing competition from China.

The hostile takeover bid came as a bombshell to SPIL’s board, as it was not approached for a deal and the companies have been in a long-term race for industry leadership.     [FULL  STORY]

Investors worried over political uncertainty in Taiwan: poll

Want China Times
Date: 2015-08-21
By: CNA

Uncertainty over Taiwan’s upcoming presidential election is affecting investor sentiment

An empty department store in Taipei, Aug. 14. (Photo/Chao Shuang-chieh)

An empty department store in Taipei, Aug. 14. (Photo/Chao Shuang-chieh)

in the country as investors think the political situation is creating risks for the local economy, a survey on economic optimism in Taiwan showed Thursday.

Cathay Financial Holding, which conducted the survey earlier this month, said 35.2% of investors think the January 2016 presidential election poses a threat to the domestic economy. Investors’ concern over the political uncertainty is greater than their worry about the debt problems in the eurozone (17.9%) and the pace of the economic recovery in emerging markets (17.2%), the poll indicated.

According to the survey, 16.5% of Taiwan investors fear that further volatility in China’s equity market will affect Taiwan’s economy, while 13.2% are apprehensive about a possible interest rate hike by the US Federal Reserve later in the year.     [FULL  STORY]